


There is Beauty in the Way of Things

by LemonCakeDesign



Series: Almost (Sweet Music) [5]
Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: Fluff, Gen, Mother-Son Relationship, Swordfighting, Teaching
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-06
Updated: 2019-11-06
Packaged: 2021-01-24 01:37:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,116
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21330118
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LemonCakeDesign/pseuds/LemonCakeDesign
Summary: I know, I knowI know thisThere is beauty in the way of thingsThe passing of the torch.
Relationships: Warrior of Light (Final Fantasy XIV) & Original Character(s)
Series: Almost (Sweet Music) [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1535039
Kudos: 6





	There is Beauty in the Way of Things

Pike lands in the mud hard, wind knocked out of him. Valliant stands over him, and she points the blade in her hand down at his throat. Then she sheathes her sword, and puts her shield on her back. She extends a hand down to Pike, which he takes, pulling himself out of the mud.

“You’re getting better,” she says, as he retrieves his sword out of the mud, frowning at the dirt caking the blade. The shield strapped to his arm doesn’t look much better.

“You say that, and yet…” Pike gestures to himself, covered in dirt from their training session so far.

“Pike, I was a paladin for years,” she says. “You’re not used to wielding a sword, it’ll take time to get close to my skill level.”

Pike sighs. “I know, I know. I’m just used to picking stuff up quickly. Never had this problem with a bow, my father put it into my hands and I was shooting better than him in a week.”

Valliant shrugs, and she stows her shield on her back. She hands Pike a cloth, and he begins to clean the mud off his sword. “They’re different beasts.” She considers him for a moment, taking in his form. “If you’re feeling stuck, though, we can try something different.”

Pike cocks his head to the side as he wipes the last bit of mud off his blade. “What do you mean?”

“Sheathe your sword,” she says. Pike does so, though the confusion still lingers. “Now, do you know how to swing dance?”

“Um, yeah?”

Valliant nods. “Good.” She takes one of his hands, and pulls him into the starting position for a swing dance, taking the lead position. “Now, when you dance with a partner, it’s about following and leading, right?” She starts stepping to an unheard beat, guiding Pike along with her. “You know the steps, it’s just about executing them in the right order. But a dance isn’t quite as fun when you do the same thing over and over again. So we start to introduce surprise elements.”

Valliant steps closer, walks side by side with him for a few steps, then extends her arm out, sending Pike out in a graceful arc. He laughs a bit, then returns to her. She grins, and continues stepping. “And then back to basic step. Now, how do you know what your partner is about to do in a dance? You don’t want to have to ask every time, that distracts from the flow.”

“You read their body language,” Pike responds, and Valliant nods. She looks to the right, and with her hand guides Pike around that direction, while she steps in place, and then turns to align herself with him again. 

“Like that. Now in dancing, it’s a bit more obvious, but the same principle applies to swordfighting. You watch their body language and respond with the right move. The goal is to switch from following to leading, to make them respond to your moves.” Valliant spins Pike out one last time, then drops his hand. 

Pike looks thoughtful. “Lead, don’t follow, watch the body language. Got it.” He nods, mostly to himself, then meets Valliant’s eyes. “Okay, let’s try this again.”

Valliant grins, and draws her sword and shield, stepping into a wide stance. “Come at me.”

Pike draws his own weapon, and they circle each other for a time, neither making the first move. Valliant’s face is the perfect picture of patience, and Pike himself doesn’t betray any emotion as he waits.

Valliant shifts, and swings down on Pike. But he sees it coming, and his sword comes up to parry her blow, knocking it away from him. He swings out with a leg, trying to destabilize her, and she dances back, just out of reach. Pike follows, blade carving up at her face.

Valliant tilts her chin back, and the blade misses by inches. Pike’s left himself open, and she takes advantage, swinging her blade down onto his open side. Pike spins, the blade skittering across his shield, and brings his own sword crashing onto her shoulder, nearly making her drop her weapon.

Pike presses the advantage, feinting to one side then slashing from the other, but he misses the angle a bit and the blade pings off the curve of her chestplate. He reels back, blocking the sword coming for his stomach awkwardly with his shield. 

They go back to circling each other, both of their chests heaving with the effort. Pike’s arm aches from the awkward block, and he can see her favoring her sword arm. His eyes narrow at that, and he presses in, aiming for her weakened arm. She raises her sword to block, but Pike lowers at the last second, going for the stab into the weak spot in her armor.

He stops just short of actually harming her, and she drops her sword in an expression of yielding.

Pike lets out a deep breath, then grins. He sheathes his sword. “Guess the metaphor worked.”

Valliant laughs, and claps him on the shoulder. “Sure did, kid." She looks at him for a few moments, then nods to herself. "I think you’re ready.”

“Ready for what?” 

Valliant’s eyes shine with pride. She reaches into her hip bag, keeping her fist closed. “I feel like I should ask you to kneel, but I think you’ve spent enough time in the mud today.” She clears her throat, and straightens, her face growing quite serious.

Pike’s eyes widen as she flips her hand over, holding out a light blue crystal. 

“Pike L’oatel, today I bequeath upon you the Soul of the Paladin.” Valliant smiles gently, the pride growing from a shine to an outright glow. “These crystals are handed down through the generations of the Sultansworn Elite, a sign of dedication and honor to the crown. Though I pass this on to you with the expectation of you becoming a free paladin, by accepting, you vow to uphold the values of the paladins of eld.” She places the soul crystal gently in his hand. “To walk this path is to become the iron foundation on which others rise, to take up the cause of the weak and defenseless, to become the first line of defense for that which you hold dear. Do you accept this honor?”

Pike’s eyes shine as she speaks, and he fights to keep himself from breaking into tears right then and there. “Of course I accept.”

Valliant’s smile grows even brighter. “Good. This crystal holds the wisdom of paladins past. Use that wisdom well.”

Pike holds the crystal tightly in his hand as he crushes Valliant into a hug. “I will.”

**Author's Note:**

> I love writing about Pike and Valliant, they're so sweet, and there's no angst or anything between them, just the love of family. I'm a sucker for found family tropes. I hope the dancing metaphor landed, I know people use dancing as a metaphor for swordfighting a lot and I thought swing actually applied really well. It may not be period appropriate for 14, but since the game's not _really_ concerned with that neither am I. Plus, I love swing dancing, so people are just going to have to deal.
> 
> The title is from There Beneath by The Oh Hellos. By the way, every character/relationship has their own music genre! I try to stick to very specific genres when I look for song titles for each fic. Valliant is folk music, for instance. Thancred gets the dark, moody stuff, like Hozier. And Pike gets...well, he gets everything.
> 
> Up next is a very fun one, though half the fun is not saying anything about it, so I'll keep it to myself :)


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